Does Having a Relative in Dialysis Therapy Affect Attitudes Toward Kidney Donating?

Context: The majority of kidney transplants in Turkey are performed from live donors and from those among first-degree relatives. Objective: To compare the view points and the attitudes of individuals who have relatives undergoing dialysis toward kidney donation treatment with those who do not. Design: The study was designed as a descriptive study, which used simple random sampling. Setting: The sample consisted of 204 individuals, divided into 2 groups: those whose relatives underwent dialysis treatment (group A, n = 106) and those whose relatives did not (group B, n = 98). Results: The means of the total points obtained in “Kidney Donation Attitude Inventory” (KDAI) by individuals in group A were statistically significantly higher than those obtained by individuals in group B (P = .001). Although there was a statistically significant difference in the educational status, status of willing to donate their kidneys and being a relative of an individual awaiting a kidney transplant, and the mean total points obtained from the KDAI between the groups (P < .05), no statistically significant difference was determined between the means of the obtained total points and the gender and the duration of dialysis treatment (P > .05). Conclusion: The attitudes of the relatives of individuals undergoing dialysis treatment toward kidney donation were determined to be more positive.